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An awful lot of enthusiasts love sports cars and super cars, but there are just as many truck lovers out there. For them we offer, once again, one of our favorite concept trucks of 2012: the Jeep Mighty FC.

We first saw the concept at the Easter Jeep Safari last April. In August, we got another chance to see and drive the Mighty FC and shoot video of it. Now, we've finally put the video together and figured, as winter grips your icy backyard, you might like another look at this really cool concept.

The original Jeep Forward Control—the “FC” in “Mighty FC”—was built 50 years ago when there was no such thing as front-impact protection standards. The idea was simple: keep the overall length short for maneuverability but still offer a big cargo box. So they slid the cab all the way to the front. You could do that before DOT started writing rules.

The Mighty FC maintains the original Forward Control's straightforward design edict and does it relatively cheaply. Most of the truck is a two-door 2012 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon. Designers simply put the Wrangler cabin over and ahead of the front axle, lengthened the wheelbase, and added a custom built drop-side cargo box. It sounds simple, doesn't it?

The Wrangler cab gets a roof from the Mopar JK-8 conversion kit, as well as a custom-designed front clip. The interior is also Wrangler-based, but with Katzkin leather and its own concept-unique color scheme. The cargo box features an 8-foot-long flatbed with drop-down walls for easy loading.

Off-road function is enhanced by Mopar's new portal axle set, offset axles that offer the greatest amount of ground clearance without requiring excessive suspension lift. That kit is in the catalog, too. King coil-over assemblies and Teraflex control arms and track bars finish the setup. The whole rig rides on 40-inch tires mounted on custom Hutchinson 17-inch beadlock wheels.

Jeep continues to insist it isn't offering a complete Mighty FC conversion kit for sale. But we continue to ask, eight months after first seeing the big bruiser, “Come on, man, why not?”

Well, there is that crash protection thing, wherein the first thing to go in a frontal assault would be both of your legs. That would be several lawsuits worth of trouble right there. Oh well.

Enough whining. Have another look at the Mighty FC in action in the video. If nothing else it'll give you something to think about all winter. See you at the 2013 Easter Safari.

Mark Vaughn
- After slumming in Europe five years covering F1 etc. Mark Vaughn interviewed with Autoweek at the 1989 Frankfurt motor show has been with us ever since because no one else will take him. Anyone?
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